


Wish

by prettylittlepetticoats



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Adult Hermione Granger, Alpha Tom Riddle, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, BAMF Hermione Granger, Enemies, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Romance, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Hermione Granger & Harry Potter Friendship, Hermione Granger-centric, Hurt/Comfort, Manipulative Tom Riddle, POV Harry Potter, POV Hermione Granger, POV Tom Riddle, Possessive Tom Riddle, Post-Second War with Voldemort, Romance, Romantic Soulmates, Seer Luna Lovegood, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Soul Bond, Soulmates, Souls, Young Tom Riddle
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-13
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:33:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,618
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25230931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/prettylittlepetticoats/pseuds/prettylittlepetticoats
Summary: 'We're a crooked love, in a straight line down'At just 25 Hermione Granger's life is dull, stuck in a dead end ministry job with no love life to speak of, she makes a wish one night that has consequences none could foresee, consequences that see a certain villain returned to corporeal form, and bound to the woman who made it so / Post-War, Slowburn, Tomione
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Tom Riddle, Luna Lovegood/Harry Potter
Comments: 9
Kudos: 57





	Wish

**Author's Note:**

> authorsnotes: this is the last one for a while I promiseeee. this idea has been in my head for a while and today I finally put pen to paper ... or fingers to keyboard. I know, I know 'finish your other wip's' 'stop starting so many' 'do you not like updating your own fics?' (the last one is real and ouch).
> 
> anywho, I do hope you enjoy! I wanted to write this, and I already love the way it is going. pls lemme know what ya think/
> 
> songrecs: I wish you would - t swifftie

* * *

She was tired, it had been another long day of going through files, petty lawsuits, and small complaints. Her eyes had ached from reading sheet after sheet of parchment, and her motivation for such work was nil. She knew most of it was bullshit, as she read over people claiming to have been bitten by dragons, and more complaints about her house elf reform act. Sheet after sheet of people complaining, squabbling, and making her life difficult. It was a wonder she hadn't fallen asleep.

But no, she had ploughed on, for this was her life now. Once a decorated war hero with the world at her feet, she had shunned the opportunities that came with fame and instead she took a position at the ministry, _to make a difference._ She snorted at that as she poured herself a glass of pinot, yeah sure, a difference.

What she had taken as an opportunity to right the wrongs for magical creatures had soon become a job that involved too much bureaucracy and very little righting wrongs. She spent her days sifting through claims and complaints, in her broom closet of an office for crap money, apparently war heroes didn't warrant decent salaries. Her mind was rotting being stuck in such a position.

She didn't want to think it was beneath her, for she wasn't a snob, but intellectually it was. After the war she had returned to Hogwarts, aced her NEWTs and then there had been opportunity after opportunity. She hadn't wanted to follow Harry into the Auror department, _'Haven't we fought enough?'_ She had asked him with a small smile and a shake of her head, but then Harry would always be the hero, would need to be. She hadn't wanted to follow Ron into the Weasley family business, but she had encouraged him to work with George, _'For Fred'_ he had said, and she had nodded, it had been good for him. She had turned down apprenticeships, prestigious positions she was not qualified for and a lot more, to right some wrongs, how stupid she had been.

"Right some wrongs" She mumbled to herself with a shake of her head as she took a long drink of her wine, right some wrongs? She was a bureaucrat nothing more, and she felt useless. Once she had fought the deadliest men alive, had almost died at the hands of Dolohov, had almost killed Fenir Greyback, had stood tall and strong as she made her parents forget her, had remained tough as Ron left her and Harry, had been brave in the face of death at the age of 17. She had been strong through it all, had been brave, but now? Now there was no bravery, unless dragging oneself to a job that was killing them counted.

She needed more, more of a challenge, more adventure. _'Time for a quiet life'_ She had joked to Harry and Ron as they had stood on the bridge, as Harry had repaired his holly wand, as the war had finally been over. She had thought she wanted a quiet life but merlin, she was _bored_.

Bored of her soul sucking job that gave little back but demanded so much, tired of coming home from work each night and feeling despair at how little change she had made. Annoyance at the awful ministry. Sure, Kingsley was Minister and he tried, he did, but with Malfoy worming his way back in and waiting in the wings, with the Wizengmont still stacked with pureblood families, with tradition considered more important than anything else, it was nigh on impossible. What could one do when the institution refused to change?

She bought them werewolf legislation, to see the awful restrictions around jobs and legal status turned over, but no, they had mumbled about dangers and dark creatures and had thrown months of work on the floor. She had bought them rights for house elves and some of them had even laughed as they voted down half a year's research and work. She had even tried small, to bring them laws that simply recognised that so many outdated laws still recognised sentient creatures as nothing more than animals, and even they were turned down.

She had thought after the war they could make a difference, and yet no one wanted to listen to her. The purebloods still ruled the roost, people didn't care about magical creatures or beasts and she was tired, tired of giving so much to work when she got nothing back. She was tired of being bored, of working hard but seeing no results, of being reduced to small claims and insignificant legal affairs. She was sick of it, but what else was there? What else did she have?

Her personal life was almost as rubbish as her work one, and that was saying something.

Ron and she had fizzled out after just a few weeks and a few kisses. It had been good natured, they had agreed to stay friends and if anything, it was easier now, without any romantic pressure, it was easier as friends. Last she heard he was dating Susan Bones, a nice girl who wouldn't put up with Ron's whining but would indulge him enough to make him happy. She'd listen to him go on and on about quidditch, they'd attend games together, they'd feel a contentment she had never felt with him, she was happy for him, truly.

And then Harry, Harry and Ginny had fizzled out just as fast. Their break-up had been a little messier, but they were friends now. Harry was often off catching the last of the Death Eaters now, rounding up those not in Azkaban, and Ginny was playing quidditch and having a good time. Neither were dating anyone serious, but they seemed happy, and even with the two break-up's Weasley dinners every Sunday were no more awkward, though Hermione had skipped the last two after her amended house elf legislation had been voted down yet again.

Her personal life was non-existent. After Ron she'd tried a few dates, one with Oliver Wood which had ended in a polite acknowledgement they were not right for one another, one with Cormac for she had been low at that point. He still kissed with a tongue shoved down her throat and she had coughed and spluttered and dashed away. Her last date had been with a French wizard Fleur had recommended, and though he had been cute it had quickly become clear he did not bat for her team. Finally, she had given up, turned down two blind dates, and resolved herself to the life of a spinster.

So, each night she came home to her little flat, drank a glass of wine or two, cooked a meal for one, fed Crookshanks, read a book and then went to bed. It was boring, it was dull, and it was almost as awful as work.

Where had it all gone wrong? When had her adventurous, death defying life become a chore? She was only 25 for Christ's sake! She was young, and yet with each day she felt life dragging on. Where was the adventure? The fun? Sure, she still saw her friends, had lunch with Harry once a week, met Ginny on weekends, even went out once or twice with their little group and those were high points, but they were the only high points. What had happened to her?

She had been ambitious, so ambitious, and now she was stuck in a cramped office, buried beneath pointless work that no one listened to anyway. What was she doing?

"What am I doing?" She asked herself as she drained the glass and scratched Crookshanks behind his ears, before standing to pour herself another glass.

As she made her way to the kitchen, she felt she should probably eat something, and with a flick of her wand she turned on the wizarding wireless, some music to cook to would be nice. For now, she would ignore her mid to young life crisis and focus on feeding herself, perhaps in getting thoroughly drunk as well. Usually she was good, tame, but for once she wanted to throw caution to the wind. Perhaps there was no adventure in her life, but she could sure as hell get drunk and forget such a depressing fact.

"What do you think Crooks?" She asked with a grin as she refilled her faithful familiar's food bowl before topping off her own glass, "Shall I drink and forget my troubles?" She said with a little snort, before scooping her unruly hair into a bun, she flicked her wand again to turn up the wireless before digging through the cupboards.

Music played from her little radio and she bobbed along as The Weird Sisters was played into her little flat.

' _I wish you would come back; wish I'd never turned away like I did'_

The song was one of their lesser hits but she happily danced along as she grabbed a pack of pasta, fixed her wand into her bun and went about cooking the muggle way, for many things she could do with a wand, the culinary arts was not one of them and she'd die before she had a house elf.

' _I wish you knew that; I'd never forget you as long as I'd live'_

She went about cooking, boiling the pasta, making the tomato sauce (well it was from a jar), cutting some onions and mushrooms to add and she continued to nod her head to the song, it was a decent tune, and as she listened she found herself singing along.

" _I wish..."_ She said with a little wistful smile as she turned and sipped down some more wine, flicked her wand to heat the vegetables and did a little wiggle of her hips to the music.

"What would I wish for Crooks?" She asked as she finished off her third glass, served up her dinner and gave Crooks some cat treats. She turned to her familiar as she poured herself another glass, responsibility be damned she was getting drunk, what harm was it? Any adventure in her life was a good thing at this point, even if her adventure involved getting drunk enough to regret it in the morning. "What would I wish for?" She asked almost herself then as the song came to an end.

Wishes were fine things, and if she had one now, she knew exactly what she would wish for, for what else did she have to complain about?

With a nod to her cat she picked up her plate and glass and turned to walk to the sofa, but not before she indulged herself a little. "I wish for adventure" She said simply, and as a minute passed and nothing came to fruition, she snorted to herself. "Guess wishing won't work now will it?" She said with a shake of her head and roll of her eyes, even the wizarding world had its limits.

But then…

"Won't it?" A voice behind her and the plate of pasta fell from her hand to crash on the floor, her wine glass followed. Even drunk she was quick to the draw, to grab her wand, whirl around and fire off a stunner at whoever had managed to get past her usually iron tight wards. The stunner ricocheted, bounced off a very strong shield, and before she had a chance to cast another, before she even got a look at her home invader a spell hit her stomach, and a groan tumbled from her lips. As she fell to the floor the next spell took her wand from her hand, a third spell was a flash of light over her eyes, and her stomach rolled.

She felt dizzy, her mind barely tracking what was going on. She knew she was scared, felt some fear in the distant back of her mind but she was too disoriented to really feel it. Her stomach ached and she felt like she might pass out.

"I'll make your wish come true" The voice was oddly familiar and yet it wasn't in a comforting way, if anything that brought the fear to the forefront of her mind, that made panic prickle up her spine. She couldn't quite place it, and yet the silky, aristocratic voice made her shiver in fear.

She couldn't place it, couldn't figure out who'd made it past her wards and managed to sneak up on her, not that if she did it would do any good, as she saw another flash of light from the assailants wand, her eyes slid shut and darkness took her.

* * *

Darkness was all he knew for the longest time. It was all he could feel, think, experience, but then he wasn't even sure if he were feeling it, or if he were just the darkness now, part of the void and nothing more.

' _We become aware of the void as we fill it'_

Was he the void now? Denied the promise of an afterlife because of the perversions he had conducted on the soul? Was darkness all he would know?

The answer to that question came when he awoke.

Air rushed into his lungs, his very real lungs, and he let out a gasp that was obscenely loud. His hands clutched his chest, corporeal, alive, real. He caught a glance of himself in a mirror across from him, and he there he was, no darkness, no void, just the man he'd been before Harry Potter had smashed him to the wind.

It only lasted for a second, maybe two, and then he felt the tug of apparition, forced apparition and he cursed into the wind.

Had his return been so short?

But no. He appeared again, and this time he gasped without sound. This time he didn't land in a room with nothing but a mirror. This time he landed in an apartment, a muggle apartment it seemed, full of clashing colours, too many books and muggle appliances.

And one drunk witch, who had just made a wish.

He knew his wand was in his pocket before he went for it, and once he reached it the little witch stood in front of him had no chance. She had more of a chance than most, when he recognised her he knew she was one of few people alive who could hold him off, but not tonight, not now he was back in his prime, elder wand in hand, and she was too drunk to react quickly.

It was easy to throw up a shield to her sloppily cast stunner (what were they teaching at Hogwarts these days?), and then another jinx to the stomach and she was gone. He found himself a little disappointed as she crumpled to the floor, disappointed she hadn't lasted very long, that she had gone down as easily as so many others. He threw another spell at her, she didn't even block him taking her wand, how dull.

Another spell, this time a flash of light to blind her, and then he was crouching down to her height, where she lay crumpled on the floor, and his words were taunting as he spoke, cruel even, speaking to his disappointment that she'd let herself be defeated so easily.

"I'll make your wish come true"

He hadn't even heard her wish, but then the words popped into his brain like they had been there all along, _'I wish for adventure'._ At that he grinned, a nasty smirk that cut across his handsome features. He scooped her up then, for she was easy to lift into his arms.

An adventure he would give.

**Author's Note:**

> sooo thoughts?
> 
> I do hope you enjoyed! lemme know if you did! 
> 
> also I know the whole idea behind it is confusing af it's meant to be ... for now
> 
> fyi, updates for paradox, and souls aligned (check em if you haven't already, if you like), are in the works. I just really wanted to get this out here!  
> if you like the pairing check out my lil oneshot - mr sandman too.
> 
> speak soon


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